Facts on Abraham Kuykendall blend with folklore for a fascinating tale

By Mary Garrison

Published: Sunday, October 25, 2009 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, October 23, 2009 at 7:12 p.m.

When the autumn air takes on a chilly bite, there's nothing like a good ghost story to wile away the evening. No wonder storytelling around the fireplace became a tradition in these mountains.

Like others who moved here, our family heard the handed-down legends of the lost gold of Abraham Kuykendall. Many a youngster in this area searched for buried goods in the backyard. I admit to putting our two on that trail when they got the indoor fidgets.

But make no mistake -- the facts behind the local legends are just as fascinating and are an important part of our heritage.

Capt. Abraham Kuykendall (1719 - 1812), was an early settler in our county, a Revolutionary War patriot and a major landowner in Flat Rock. His great-grandson Charles Kuykendall -- and that's six "greats" by the way -- also lives in Flat Rock with his wife, Karen, and their two fine sons, Douglas and Will.

Folks know Charles for his skills as a CPA, as past president of Historic Flat Rock Inc. and as a devotee of local history. He also has great pride in his ancestor Abraham and recently shared his story.

What are the facts behind the ghost tales?

"These stories have become an important part of the oral tradition of N.C.," says Charles.

The truth is that Abraham Kuykendall did amass considerable wealth. He built a complex that included a tavern, an inn and a meeting house/church located on Rutledge Drive, in the area between today's Mud Creek Baptist Church and St. John in the Wilderness Church. He also owned a grist mill. As business was conducted in coins those days and there were no banks, Abraham stored his earnings at home.

Abraham and wife Elizabeth were married for 55 years. They raised more than a dozen children. But Elizabeth preceded Abraham in death at around age 75.

Enter Bathsheba, Abraham's second wife who was both young and beautiful. His bride liked to spend so Abraham decided to hide his money. He put his coins in an iron wash pot and went through the forest with two blindfolded slaves carrying the money. They buried the pot under a large white oak, were blindfolded again and returned home.

When Abraham decided to retrieve his money, he headed for the woods. No one knows for sure, but the theory is he tripped, hit his head and rolled into a creek called Pheasant Branch. There he was found dead, facedown in the stream. He was 93. The coins were never located, but a local family that suddenly became wealthy caused some raised eyebrows.

Through a 200-year-old oral tradition, tales have been told of Abraham's spirit still searching for his fortune. The legend includes mysterious lights in the woods, an ethereal man on a wagon with his wash pot and even a roaming headless horseman.

The lost gold has been written about numerous times in treasure magazines, says Charles. In fact, in 1993 Kuykendall descendants were contacted by a high-tech English treasure hunter. He prepared to mount an expedition, but cancelled due to personal problems.

It would be a disservice to Abraham to end his story here. The legends make for spine-tingling entertainment, but Kuykendall made important contributions to our county, to western North Carolina and to our fledgling country.

In the 1740s, Kuykendall's family migrated down the Great Wagon Road from New York to settle in North Carolina. He quickly became a community leader. He served the N.C. colony as a corporal during the 1740s Spanish Alarm, when Spain was a threat to ports on the Carolina coast.

In 1775, he was named captain of the Safety Committee in Tryon, a form of law enforcement in small communities then. When war began in earnest, he was commissioned as a captain in the Tryon Militia during the Revolutionary War, serving from 1774 to 1781. He was a member of Samuel Adams' Committee of Correspondence.

Kuykendall was appointed Justice of the Peace and Justice for the Court of Quarter Sessions by the N.C. General Assembly. He served as a county commissioner for both Tryon and Rutherford counties. He was also asked to oversee building a road and locating a site for the courthouse in Rutherford County.

On Oct. 10, 1779, Abraham made one of the earliest requests for a land grant in Flat Rock, though it was not made official until the 1790s. Basically, he owned what we call Flat Rock today.

"Abraham founded some of WNC's first businesses, including a fine inn, a tavern and a mill," says Charles Kuykendall.

He also donated the land where the current Mud Creek Baptist Church and cemetery are located. He was buried there in 1812. If you visit the cemetery today, you can see the monument in his honor.

We owe a debt of gratitude to the pioneers who settled in this area. I've often thought of the hardscrabble life they must have led to blaze roads, build homes and begin businesses in the wilderness.

As his great-grandson Charles wrote, "The story of the life of Capt. Abraham Kuykendall is in many ways similar to the story of the formation of our country itself. During his life… he witnessed the transformation of America in 1719 from a land of insular, tight-knit colonies which had little in common with each other, to in 1812, a great republic and beacon of freedom, and a country which was just beginning to take its place as a major player on the world's stage."

Enjoy the ghost stories if you will, but take a moment to be grateful for the perseverance and contributions of early settlers like Abraham Kuykendall.

<p>When the autumn air takes on a chilly bite, there's nothing like a good ghost story to wile away the evening. No wonder storytelling around the fireplace became a tradition in these mountains.</p><p>Like others who moved here, our family heard the handed-down legends of the lost gold of Abraham Kuykendall. Many a youngster in this area searched for buried goods in the backyard. I admit to putting our two on that trail when they got the indoor fidgets.</p><p>But make no mistake -- the facts behind the local legends are just as fascinating and are an important part of our heritage.</p><p>Capt. Abraham Kuykendall (1719 - 1812), was an early settler in our county, a Revolutionary War patriot and a major landowner in Flat Rock. His great-grandson Charles Kuykendall -- and that's six "greats" by the way -- also lives in Flat Rock with his wife, Karen, and their two fine sons, Douglas and Will.</p><p>Folks know Charles for his skills as a CPA, as past president of Historic Flat Rock Inc. and as a devotee of local history. He also has great pride in his ancestor Abraham and recently shared his story.</p><p>What are the facts behind the ghost tales?</p><p>"These stories have become an important part of the oral tradition of N.C.," says Charles.</p><p>The truth is that Abraham Kuykendall did amass considerable wealth. He built a complex that included a tavern, an inn and a meeting house/church located on Rutledge Drive, in the area between today's Mud Creek Baptist Church and St. John in the Wilderness Church. He also owned a grist mill. As business was conducted in coins those days and there were no banks, Abraham stored his earnings at home.</p><p>Abraham and wife Elizabeth were married for 55 years. They raised more than a dozen children. But Elizabeth preceded Abraham in death at around age 75.</p><p>Enter Bathsheba, Abraham's second wife who was both young and beautiful. His bride liked to spend so Abraham decided to hide his money. He put his coins in an iron wash pot and went through the forest with two blindfolded slaves carrying the money. They buried the pot under a large white oak, were blindfolded again and returned home.</p><p>When Abraham decided to retrieve his money, he headed for the woods. No one knows for sure, but the theory is he tripped, hit his head and rolled into a creek called Pheasant Branch. There he was found dead, facedown in the stream. He was 93. The coins were never located, but a local family that suddenly became wealthy caused some raised eyebrows.</p><p>Through a 200-year-old oral tradition, tales have been told of Abraham's spirit still searching for his fortune. The legend includes mysterious lights in the woods, an ethereal man on a wagon with his wash pot and even a roaming headless horseman.</p><p>The lost gold has been written about numerous times in treasure magazines, says Charles. In fact, in 1993 Kuykendall descendants were contacted by a high-tech English treasure hunter. He prepared to mount an expedition, but cancelled due to personal problems.</p><p>It would be a disservice to Abraham to end his story here. The legends make for spine-tingling entertainment, but Kuykendall made important contributions to our county, to western North Carolina and to our fledgling country.</p><p>In the 1740s, Kuykendall's family migrated down the Great Wagon Road from New York to settle in North Carolina. He quickly became a community leader. He served the N.C. colony as a corporal during the 1740s Spanish Alarm, when Spain was a threat to ports on the Carolina coast.</p><p>In 1775, he was named captain of the Safety Committee in Tryon, a form of law enforcement in small communities then. When war began in earnest, he was commissioned as a captain in the Tryon Militia during the Revolutionary War, serving from 1774 to 1781. He was a member of Samuel Adams' Committee of Correspondence.</p><p>Kuykendall was appointed Justice of the Peace and Justice for the Court of Quarter Sessions by the N.C. General Assembly. He served as a county commissioner for both Tryon and Rutherford counties. He was also asked to oversee building a road and locating a site for the courthouse in Rutherford County.</p><p>On Oct. 10, 1779, Abraham made one of the earliest requests for a land grant in Flat Rock, though it was not made official until the 1790s. Basically, he owned what we call Flat Rock today.</p><p>"Abraham founded some of WNC's first businesses, including a fine inn, a tavern and a mill," says Charles Kuykendall.</p><p>He also donated the land where the current Mud Creek Baptist Church and cemetery are located. He was buried there in 1812. If you visit the cemetery today, you can see the monument in his honor.</p><p>We owe a debt of gratitude to the pioneers who settled in this area. I've often thought of the hardscrabble life they must have led to blaze roads, build homes and begin businesses in the wilderness.</p><p>As his great-grandson Charles wrote, "The story of the life of Capt. Abraham Kuykendall is in many ways similar to the story of the formation of our country itself. During his life he witnessed the transformation of America in 1719 from a land of insular, tight-knit colonies which had little in common with each other, to in 1812, a great republic and beacon of freedom, and a country which was just beginning to take its place as a major player on the world's stage."</p><p>Enjoy the ghost stories if you will, but take a moment to be grateful for the perseverance and contributions of early settlers like Abraham Kuykendall.</p>